Chrome and Silver
by reppuzan
Summary: He was built to be a weapon. The perfect, unquestioning soldier, a being of unparalleled might to defend the kingdoms from the creatures that threaten to devour them. Yet, what if he could be something more? What if he could be... human.
1. Prologue: War During Peace

Disclaimer: I do not own RWBY. All characters/concepts/ideas aside from my original characters/concepts/ideas belong to their respective owners.

* * *

This tale takes place on a world named Remnant. Here the humans are plagued everyday by creatures of the dark known as Grimm, monsters without souls whose only pleasure is to feed on those who have them. Thankfully, humans found a way to fight back against these monsters. The discoveries of Dust, Semblances, and Aura allowed the humans to form an effective fighting force and beat back the Grimm towards the outskirts of Remnant. These warriors are known as Hunters and Huntresses, those who fight Grimm to protect the world from the darkness who intend to swallow it. They eventually formed four kingdoms, the final bastions of human society. These kingdoms are Mistral, Vale, Vacuo, and Atlas.

This story will focus on a particular resident of the last kingdom, Atlas.

Atlas is by far the most technologically advanced and innovative of the four kingdoms. They do not rely solely on their Hunters and Huntresses, instead supporting them with an army of fully trained soldiers, known collectively as the Atlesian military. Their primary purpose in the battle against the Grimm is to provide firing support for the Hunters and the defense of key locations, such as the boundaries of kingdoms. It is here that this story will begin.

Are you ready?

Then let us start.

* * *

**Outskirts of Atlas – Battlefield**

* * *

It was the dead of the night, the pitch black darkness only pierced by two sources of light. The first was the searchlight provided by Remnant's shattered moon, illuminating patches of the shadows. The second, the flash of blaster and gunfire aimed directly at the oncoming hordes of Grimm.

The Grimm have been particularly aggressive in recent times, attacking even in broad daylight. However, it was common knowledge to all that the Grimm were most dangerous at night, when the darkness was strongest and permeated every nook and cranny of the land.

"Shit! Shit!" cried one soldier as he was forced to retreat. Despite the fact that their forces were bolstered by the newest line of android soldiers, the prototype Atlesian Knight-200s, the line was being overrun by an endless sea of Grimm monsters. A wave of opaque ebony dotted with splotches of white and red, the color of the masks and eyes each and every Grimm bore.

"Where the hell are our reinforcements?" yelled another, desperately hoping for an answer. The pained voices and final noises of several soldiers were drowned out by the roars and screams of the Grimm, who came as relentlessly as ever.

James Ironwood, one of Atlas's generals, watches the scene from his command center. Atlas has been trying to keep human soldiers off the front lines for years. Even with the best the kingdom has to offer men still have to be sent to die against the Grimm since the standard mass-production combat androids can only do so much. Even so, he had anticipated an occurrence like this, and had already prepared an appropriate countermeasure.

With a push of a button he established communications with his research and development team.

A scrawny, disheveled old man appeared on screen. "Hello General, if you wondering about Unit 02 we're still testing his combat ability and-"

"Professor Pollendina, send Unit 02 to the north border immediately. It's time for his first field test."

"What? We haven't finished running combat simulations with him!"

"He is still ready for battle isn't he?"

"Perhaps, but the Core is still unstable! If he is deployed now we risk scrapping him entirely!"

"It's either him or the Kingdom, Professor. I think we know who is more willing to rebel should the Grimm breach the walls."

After a long pause, the old man finally barked back, "Fine! But if my masterpiece is destroyed before it is even finished the bill is on you!" The screen then went black as the scientist hung up.

"Let's hope this masterpiece of his can hold up against the Grimm." pondered Ironwood as he continued to monitor the battlefield.

* * *

**Atlesian Military Research and Development Lab**

* * *

"Unit 02!" called the scientist to his creation. Unit 02, serial number CH-120443, stopped hacking away at his training targets long enough to turn around and listen. Unit 02, like his predecessor, was designed to resemble a human to match his ability to use Aura, the power inherent in all natural beings with souls. He appeared to be a fit adolescent male of around fifteen years of age, with short, spiky hair that shone a striking silver. His synthetic skin had a light complexion, his eyes a chestnut color. In order to properly link his experimental power source, known referred to as the Core, he was kept rather petite in stature contrary to his initial blueprints. The professor didn't fret over this fact as according to calculations this wouldn't affect his expected combat performance all that much.

"As much as I loathe to say this, you're going to be deployed to the front lines within the hour. I don't have any completed armaments available for you, but you're welcome to take any of the prototypes from the lab you feel comfortable with."

Unit 02 only nodded at the doctor as he received his directives. Proceeding over to the armory filled with experimental weapons. Among them included miniature warheads which split into cluster bombs, a massive beam cannon that could vaporize opponents, and a pair of gauntlets that would've amplified his already great strength to ludicrous levels.

However, the android ignored all of those things and instead took only two different weapons. The first was a massive blade as long as he was tall and nearly as wide. It was built to be as strong and sturdy as he was, thus a preferred weapon for his programmed role of being on the front lines of combat. The second, two .50 caliber heavy machine guns whose magazines were filled to the brim with explosive, armor piercing rounds powerful enough to blast gaping holes in any unfortunate victim caught in their firing paths. Having learned from previous exercises, he also took a number of sidearms, including throwing daggers, handguns, and enough explosives to sink a small fleet of military airship from the inside. Together the equipment would have weighed at least two hundred kilograms, unbearably heavy for a human, but handled as easily as children's toys by the android.

After donning the standard blue and silver Atlesian armor, the robot prepared to leave through the double doors of the lab before being stopped by his creator.

"02, you and your sister unit are my greatest works. Do _not_ let yourself be destroyed. I expect you to be back here in one piece. Consider this a direct order, ingrain it into your main protocols immediately!"

The androids eyes, normally invisible behind the nearly-opaque visor of his helmet, briefly flashed a luminescent blue before returning to normal at these words.

"Directives received, Professor." The android stated in complete monotone as confirmation to the order's completion.

"Now go before that stick in the mud calls again."

With that, Unit 02 departed the lab for the first time to the dangerous, deceitful, and deadly outside world.

* * *

**Skies Over the Battlefield**

* * *

On the airship, Unit 02 waited in complete silence and with inhuman patience, exactly he was programmed to. He was sifting through the figures uploaded to him from headquarters on the battle's situation at a speed exceeding that of a quantum computer, soldiers confirmed killed, estimated Grimm numbers, current allied formations, and chances of victory during the current situation. The last value he recited to the soldiers inside the airship with him aloud.

"Estimated chance of victory: 0%" he said as if it were a simple fact, common knowledge that everyone knew.

This caused the gaze of the soldiers inside to narrow at the words of the robot before them.

"What do you mean zero percent? Are you saying we're only going to be going off to die?!" exclaimed a younger, more inexperienced soldier in panic.

The soldier was quickly silenced by his more experienced squad member with a slap on the back, "Pipe down, the kid in front of you is a robot. Unit 02 I think they called him."

"Oh... that explains why he's carrying so much." muttered the younger soldier in embarrassment.

"Hey, 02." The combat android looked up, preparing himself for additional orders or simply to respond. "Are ya feeling anxious? Penny did during her first mission."

"According to my schematics and the professor I was built to optimize my combat and calculation ability. According to my profile data and the professor I was built to lack emotional output due my nature as a strategic-class weapon created for the defense of Atlas. I am nothing more than a tool to be used as seen fit by Atlas' leadership. Thus I am not supposed to be able to feel fear, grief, or other sensations associated with the term anxiety."

"If ya say so kid, this newbie here could use some of that backbone of yours. Then again, you're a newbie too!" The veteran soldier gave a hearty laugh, clearly trying to lighten the mood.

"I lack human vertebrae. My body is supported by a ceramic-reinforced titanium skeleton in order to allow me to withstand any debilitating impact and support any equipment I carry into battle." 02 replied, once again without any feeling in his synthesized voice. The soldier simply shrugged in response before continuing to try and help his younger comrade relax.

"Objective point reached, commencing next phase of the operation." 02 rose from his seat and began to leave for the entrance hatch, despite the fact that the airship was still thousands of feet in the air.

The robot reached up and tapped the security camera to get the pilot's attention. "Captain, I have reached my drop zone. Please release the hatch so I may be deployed as outlined in General Ironwood's report.

Naturally the pilot paused at the ridiculous request before realizing who had stated it. The hatch opened, allowing the gales created by the engines and the atmosphere to rush into the cabin.

"Happy landings, Tin Can." 02 let himself fall out of the airship the same way a corpse would off a plane. He was about as aerodynamic as a brick, so he simply dived straight down to reach his target landing spot.

"Engaging optical scanners..." 02's eyes flashed green as they began surveying the battlefield. "Scan complete, initiating calculations."

The ground continued to dart towards him as he did so. Upon reaching terminal velocity he adjusted his position so that he wouldn't plant himself in the ground when he landed.

"Landing imminent in:"

"5..."

"4..."

"3..."

"2..."

"1..."

The android hit the ground with a resounding crash, catching the attention of all present, Grimm and humans alike.

"Calculations complete. Estimated Grimm population, one thousand. Estimated chance of victory: 5%"

The Atlesian soldiers were low ranking, and thus not keen on 02's existence nor his capabilities. As a result, they panicked when they saw their reinforcements consisted of a lone small figure on the horizon.

"He's supposed to be the cavalry HQ?!" 02 could hear one soldier growl.

"We're seriously doomed!" yelled another in despair.

All of the Grimm present, Beowolves, Ursas, and Boarbatusks growled and clawed at the air as they observed the new arrival.

He paid neither the soldiers nor the Grimm any mind however, instead patching through to General Ironwood with his built in communications system.

"General Ironwood, this is Unit 02, serial number CH-20443. I have arrived at the target location as ordered. Requesting directives."

Ironwood gave very simple instructions, "Eliminate all enemies. Do not allow a single one to enter Atlas!"

"Directives received. Commencing mission, elimination of all targets!"

02's eyes turned a brilliant shade of vermillion as he primed of the grenades he armed himself with. Throwing them into the crowd, he drew the two heavy machine guns from his back holsters immediately afterward, drawing a bead on the enemy as a reticule and dozens of targeting circles appeared in his vision.

"Initiating combat mode, fire!" 02 charged in guns blazing, gradually adjusting his grip to compensate for recoil and maximize accuracy as he swept the rifles through the crowd of monstrosities. The Grimm caught in the initial burst were instantly decimated and evaporated into nothingness as they were torn into chunks by the high caliber rounds. Those who followed met the same fate, the others flooding after the new, deadly target.

It wasn't long until the rapid rate of fire the caught up with the magazines and completely emptied them, forcing 02 to discard the rifles and draw the massive blade he arrived equipped with. A pack of Beowolves attended to flank him from the sides and pounce, only to be bisected horizontally as the edge seamlessly cleaved through flesh and bone.

An Ursa then attempted to attack from behind as the Boarbatusks charged straight towards 02 as he brought back his sword for another blow. Realizing this, the android jumped several feet into the air, causing the unfortunate Grimm to crash into each other as the blade descended upon them. The weight and sharpness of the blade allowed it to penetrate the tough, white armor of the monsters, tearing them apart and sending the remains towards their advancing allies as projectiles.

"Current enemy population: seven hundred. Requesting fire support."

These simple words snapped the soldiers out of their shock and confusion, "You heard the kid, fire!"

The remaining soldiers hunkered down before laying down a blanket of suppressive fire to help their new ally, knocking out a few dozen Grimm and giving 02 the ability to recalculate and consider all possible courses of action.

In the end, however, the android's order to keep any of the Grimm from entering the city took priority, causing him to just end up diving into the hordes and slashing the unfortunate beasts to bits with his sword. Noticing a few Beowolves once again trying to flank him, 02 brandished his throwing knives and flung them at the advancing pack. The blades sunk deep between the eyes, the rest of their bodies quickly collapsing in response.

Even with all of his programmed maneuvers and hours of combat practice the android certainly wasn't perfect. A number of Grimm managed to breach his furious assault and clawed at the robot furiously in an attempt to down him, tearing through the outer layers of his armor as well as pieces of his synthetic skin and outer skeleton. An Ursa managed to sink its fangs into 02's chest and Core, heavily damaging the vital component. None of this fazed him as he swept his attackers away with the blunt side of his blade in retaliation, imploding the monster's skulls and crushing their masks as proof. The remaining Grimm did not dare to advance, only roaring at the threat before them as 02 once again sized up their remaining numbers.

"Estimated remaining Grimm population... two hundred. Note, current population shocked by the sudden display of force and unwilling to attack."

02 was prepared to dive back into the thick of things when a warning notice appeared in his heads up display. The output of the Core, his power source and functional heart, had dropped to less than half of its maximum capacity and beginning to dip into the critical zone. He would've have pressed on regardless if the command center had not sent another message, stating "A massive wave of Grimm spotted heading towards the north border. Estimated numbers: four thousand."

"A wave of four thousand Grimm is heading towards this location." he relayed over the communications network. Switching channels, he contacted his creator as the Atlesian personnel scrambled to come up with a solution.

"Professor, requesting authorization to use the Galatine."

"Are your thought processes malfunctioning 02?! It takes at least two minutes to charge! Besides, the Core is at less than half capacity! If you use it now the potential backlash could destroy the Core and render you irreparable!"

"A wave of four thousand is headed straight for the kingdom, Professor. The Galatine is the only weapon available to the currently deployed forces capable of wiping out the enemy before any casualties can be inflicted."

"I am not going give you permission to destroy yourself! There has to be another way!"

"Professor, my programming states that I am to do whatever is necessary to act in the defense of Atlas. You were the one who told me that."

"No, means no! I already told you that you are to come back intact and that's final!"

"Do you have a solution 02?" asked Ironwood, accessing the communications channel.

"I am capable of synchronizing my Semblance with the Core to achieve a highly destructive arc of energy capable of wiping out the oncoming enemy. Known issues are the charging time and the potential for my own self-destruction as a result of my currently damaged state."

"We have the latest in military technology General! You can't risk destroying my creation over one attack by the Grimm!"

"What is your estimated probability that the wave would be destroyed by this attack?" asked 02, ignoring the scientist's pleas.

"96.6%, sir. There is also an 89.4% chance that the Core would be damaged beyond repair by the use of this attack in my current state. The probability of my destruction increases with time."

Ironwood mulled over the choice carefully. Ordering the attack would likely save the city from the oncoming Grimm and keep casualties at a minimum. This would however, come at a steep cost, the loss of Penny's "brother", an incredibly powerful weapon. If he did not, the Grimm would probably making it into the city and result in massive amounts of property damage and a high number of civilian deaths. However, there was a chance that Unit 02 would survive, but the same could not be said for the citizens of Atlas.

"Authorization granted. Destroy them as soon as possible."

"You can't do this!" moaned Geppetto as he faced his creation's possible destruction.

"We don't have a choice! Give him the code now!"

The professor finally gave in and said through gritted teeth, "Code: Galatine. Password: 3XC41I8U12."

"Authorization received." replied the android as he raised the sword in his hands into the air, "Releasing limiters. Core, full drive!" A brilliant white light began to gather around the blade, taking its shape and slowly extending into the sky. In spite of its damaged state, the Core in his chest began to shine at the same time. Dimly at first, but increasingly radiant with every passing second.

"Estimated completion time: two minutes thirty-five seconds. Requesting covering fire until the preparation for the Galatine is completed."

"He's the only thing we've got boys! Give em' hell!" hollered the veteran soldier from earlier, having landed only thirty minutes ago due to the Grimm having blocked the viable landing spots.

Having no other options, the uninjured soldiers all complied and began unloading every last magazine they had on the black and red tsunami in an attempt to buy time.

Two and a half minutes. A seemingly short amount of time. Time we take for granted. But on the battlefield that time feels like an eternity. In the minds of these warriors the sands of the hourglass of time were falling painfully slowly amidst the sound of gunfire and the smell of gunpowder. Any second now they could be killed by practically anything. Eaten alive by a Beowolf's fangs, rended asunder by an Ursa's claws, impaled upon a Boarbatusks's tusks, even shot by a stray bullet.

Yet to these soldiers every second was liquid gold. They pressed on in search of this invaluable substance. For every second was a chance to keep fighting, a chance to go back home, a chance to see their family.

Every second was a chance to live.

"Fuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuck!" screamed a sergeant as the Grimm began to inch closer and closer to his position. They were fifty meters away. Then thirty meters. Then ten meters. The Grimm would soon be upon them. Just like the characters in the fairy tales of their name sake, the heroes would die a horrible and tragic death. The game seemed to be up, the match seemed to have been all but set, the end near. All of their hopes rested on their trump card, a weapon resembling a human but wasn't a human at all. They prayed, hoping for the miracle promised them.

Their prayers were answered by an artificial voice, its owner's eyes glowing the color azure as intensely as the stars themselves, "Charging complete. Code: Galatine, full power!" the synthetic voice shouted across the battlefield.

The sword, now enveloped in a pillar of blinding light that stretched into the sky that seemed to scrape every celestial body, came down to destroy the denizens of darkness. He left no time for the Grimm to react, the blade turning into a beam that shot through the never-ending hordes.

The light that resembled divine judgment itself did not merely defeat its foes, it obliterated, vaporized, and annihilated its unfortunate targets. It returned them to the nil from which they came, completely and utterly destroying them in a supernova of pure energy.

When the soldiers could see again, not a trace of the Grimm remained. There was no trace of their former foes left, not even particles. The night once again grew silent as the members of the Atlesian military stared blankly at the scene before them.

At first they couldn't believe it. Wouldn't you think it'd be incredulous to see the enemy simply vanish into thin air? They pinched themselves, trying to wake themselves up from what seemed like a dream too sweet to be true. Eventually they realized that the scene before their eyes was neither a dream, nor a mirage, nor an illusion. They had triumphed, their desperate struggle had born its fruit. They had triumphed. They immediately starting cheering, they had won their little war. Their impossible battle was a victory, a success.

For the android boy that made this possible, there was no celebration. The helmet that concealed his face had been blown off from the force of the attack, revealing his youthful, but exhausted and dazed face. He could hear nothing but warning messages and alarms as he felt his body systems shutting down due to the critical power failure. This was the cost of resulted of using his dangerously draining ace in the hole in his injured state.

"_WARNING! CORE OUTPUT LEVELS CRITICALLY LOW!"_

"_WARNING! 60% OF THE CORE HAS SUSTAINED MASSIVE DAMAGE!"_

"_WARNING POWER LEVELS INSUFFICIENT TO SUPPORT NORMAL FUNCTIONS."_

Only the soldier from earlier, the unusually jolly and optimistic veteran, noticed the boy standing by himself. His expression a blank daze, as if he'd sustained some kind of head injury.

"That was something robot kid! You really saved our asses!" patting the boy on the back. The boy however, didn't feel the gesture, as that part of his body had already lost function. His legs gave out the second after, causing the soldiers' champion and savior to fall to the cold, hard ground.

"Kid, are you alright?" the veteran asked. The boy's limbs went limp, his sensors on the verge of following.

"_Hey, Kid!" _the words sounded distant and far away to the young warrior, the last phrase he heard before his sensors finally went.

The android shut down, unable to hear, see, or experience any sensation but the empty, unflinching darkness.

* * *

Another opening to another story. This is my bid at an original RWBY fan fiction, the idea popping into my head in the middle of class as usual. In the show, it bothered me that there were only a pair of guards to protect Penny in spite of the incredible military value she has. So I decided to make Unit 02 to satisfy my criticisms of this detail (don't worry, he'll be getting a more proper name later). I have an idea for his gun-melee weapon hybrid already, which you might be able to guess from this prologue alone. I certainly hoped you liked this story guys. Thanks for reading and post a review if you've got the time.


	2. Chapter 1: Alien Emotions

Disclaimer: I don't own RWBY or any of its characters. All characters/ideas/concepts besides my own original ones belong to their respective owners.

* * *

**Atlesian Military Research and Development Lab**

* * *

The following morning the professor was working furiously to restore Unit 02 to full function. There wasn't a second where he wasn't doing something. If he wasn't repairing the Core he was restoring the android boy's skin or doing maintenance on his limbs. However, what was really making him tear his hair out was the fact that despite the fact that the Core had been restored to 90% of it's normal capacity, the boy still hadn't awoken. Regardless, he continued working, thanking whatever divine beings above for sparing his creation from almost certain death as he tried to figure out the issue.

"Father, I brought the parts you requested." said an orange haired girl with bright green eyes. This was Unit 01, also known as Penny Polendina, the first synthetic being with the ability to emit an Aura. To her the good professor was her father and he thought of her as his biological daughter.

"Thank you, Penny." The professor's eyes did not avert from his work, but the warmth was evident in his voice.

"Who is this?" she asked as she wondered what her father was working on. She had been away learning about the norms of society, such as trends and gestures in order to blend in.

"Ah yes, this is the first time you've seen him isn't it? Penny, this is your younger brother, Unit 02. He also has the ability to emit an Aura, and an incredibly powerful one at that. I haven't come up with a name for him yet, but he was injured during his first field test last night."

"A brother! I always wanted a brother! What does he wear? What does he like? What is he like? Does he like girls?" the robot girl rattled off in quick succession.

Geppetto gave a small frown at the thought, "To be honest, I haven't really programmed much a personality into him yet."

"Why not?"

"Well, Mr. Ironwood wanted a weapon, so I gave him one. Now I regret it as his inability to make his own choices almost got him killed."

"So why not give him one now?"

"It's not that simple my dear. I'd have to rewrite most of his thought processes and begin educating him on right and wrong once he restarts himself."

The professor sighed as he reviewed his notes, "What could be wrong with him?" He had checked him over several dozen times. For the most part 02 should have been perfectly functional with almost every part in pristine condition. It was beyond him as to why he wasn't starting up again.

"Um, maybe it's not a mechanical issue. Could it be an issue with his code after the repairs?"

The old engineer eyes sparkled with renewed vigor at his daughter's words, "Of course! I knew I designed your thought processes well! Surely if I run a diagnostic through his thought processes something should-"

His hopes were cut short as the diagnostics found nothing unusual in 02's code nor was there any damage to his processors.

"Blast! I was sure that was the issue! If only there were some kind of patch I could just apply to instantly fix whatever is wrong with him!"

This time it was Penny's turn to have a revelation, "Father, I think I know where there might be one!"

"What? Where?" he asked. The professor was incredibly skilled in his field, but as an aging man his memory isn't always sharp.

"I was organizing your files this morning when I saw an old looking data disk! It was marked, "should Unit 02 stop working for an unknown reason apply this patch." in really pretty handwriting!"

"Pretty handwriting? Must have been that rule-bending pinhead from Beacon. But... when was that disk delivered?"

"I don't know. I found it on your desk this morning."

"_Could he have foreseen this?"_ wondered the professor as he pondered over this new information. He shook the thought out of his mind. It didn't matter right now. What mattered was saving his creation, his child, from being sent to the scrap heap.

"Penny, I'm going to have to ask you to bring that data disk to me as soon as possible."

"Right away, Father!" she then scurried off to retrieve what could be her younger brother's salvation.

"I certainly hope this works. If it does, I'll then hope be able to come up with a good name for you." the old roboticist joked to himself as he returned to his work.

* * *

Core Systems: 100%

Rebooting internal systems...

Motor Systems: Online

Logic Processes: Online

Environmental Sensors: Online

Internal systems: All Green.

Initiating start up...

Unit 02's eyes fluttered open for the first time since that fateful night as his systems finally restarted. He sat up and surveyed his surroundings, noticing that he was not on the outskirts of Atlas anymore but instead inside the familiar confines of the research laboratory.

He was greeted by the smiling face of his predecessor unit, "You're awake! Father, he's awake!"

"That's a relief." the scientist walked over to check on his creation, "How are you feeling?"

"My diagnostic systems found no abnormalities Professor."

"Good. This is your first time meeting your sister isn't it?"

"Sister, sir?"

"Yes, I'm your sister! It's so nice to meet you, little brother!" Penny immediately ran up to Unit 02 and embraced him lovingly.

For most infants, their first real emotion is confusion as they are unaccustomed to the world around them. For the relatively new robot on the table, this was the exact feeling that was working through his logic processes.

He began blinking frequently the way a human would when startled, "Professor, why is Unit 01 in such close proximity to me?"

"She's only showing you her affection and excitement for meeting you."

"Affection? Excitement? Professor, I don't understand." The words were alien to the robot boy, whose puzzled expression only served to highlight how perplexed he was.

"Let's slow it down for a bit. Penny, give him some space."

She did as she was instructed, stepping away from her brother unit, albeit somewhat reluctantly.

"Now, have you noticed that you've been doing something you've never done before 02?"

This only served to confuse him even more, "Something I've been doing? I've only been functional for the past four minutes and thirty two seconds Professor. What could I have been-" The realization hit him with all the subtlety of a truck crashing into a brick wall at eighty miles an hour.

He was asking questions.

Weapons and soldiers like him are not supposed to ask questions.

It was against his directives, his code, the fiber of _his being_ to ask questions.

There was something horribly wrong with him.

His look of confusion quickly morphed into panic as he tried to comprehend his situation, running dozens of diagnostic scans in an attempt to figure out what was happening to him. His frustration only grew as each scan returned with negative results, flooding his thought processes with feelings of terror and anger completely unknown to him.

Seeing his creation ready to tear his own hair out from the frightful epiphany the scientist decided to bring an end to the boy's suffering. "02, I order you to calm down!"

The boy's mind cleared immediately, but the pain he felt in his brief ordeal was still excruciatingly evident on his face.

"W-what is wrong with me?" he stammered, flinching as he realized that he had asked yet another question.

"This is going to be a lot to take in, so I want you to listen carefully. Your tactic yesterday was effective, but damn near suicidal. I was able to restore you to full physical condition, but some reason you wouldn't reboot yourself. I ended up using an old backup file that Penny found to overwrite portions of your thought processes. It worked, but among those files was a great deal of emotional data. So like Penny you will now be able to express and feel emotions much like any human."

"Will this not impair my combat performance?" The boy asked through gritted teeth. The act of asking for more information remained an unbearable feeling to the boy who was not supposed to question anything ordered of him as he struggled to understand what was going on.

"Now 02, you don't need to be so hesitant to ask questions. It is how we as people learn. I do recall an old proverb, those who asks questions remain a fool for a moment, but those who do not remain fools forever."

The proverb's meaning flew over the boy's head as he continue to ponder about the events transpiring before him, "Is it really alright for me to be doing this? Weapons are not supposed to question-"

"Ah, that's where you are wrong. Listen to yourself. You are not simply asking questions. You are thinking for yourself, forming your own ideas from the few things you already know. You are no longer just a weapon. You are a sentient being now fully capable of feeling with the soul you were born with. A person."

"I-If that is what you say Professor..." Even with these encouraging words a feeling of insecurity and doubt washed over the boy, only irking him and creating even more discomfort.

"Now onto your combat performance, your new ability to think may be a positive or negative influence. On the downside, you now have the ability to second guess orders, a liability on the battlefields Ironwood wants you stationed at. Yet you are also able to make your own decisions and adapt to new situations, which may enhance your overall performance exponentially. It's a double-edged sword, but a weapon I hope you'll be able to harness effectively."

The Professor walked to another one of his work tables before turning back to his practically infantile creation, "Though on the topic of combat, I suppose I have a present for you." He threw off the fabric draped over the object underneath, revealing the armament underneath.

"I call it the Tactical Arms: Durandal!" The weapon was an actual double-edged sword, and a certainly large one at that. It was exactly one hundred and fifty centimeters long from the bottom of hilt to the tip of the blade, about five feet long. Thus it was almost as long as 02 was tall. The core of the blade was colored a deep sea blue while its edges were as white as freshly fallen snow. The shape of blade resembled a kite shield, nearly two feet wide close to the hilt but it narrowed somewhat as one's gaze approached the end, but it remained nevertheless quite thick looking for a sword.

The hilt was also exceptionally long. Both sides of it were adorned with what appeared to be the triggers for a heavy machine gun akin to the ones 02 used last night. These triggers were parallel to the blade, giving the weapon a peculiar but solid grip. The guard consisted of a pair if of attachments resembling vertically divided trapezoids on either side of the hilt along with a conjoining unit in the middle, separating the blade from the hilt in a crude but efficient way.

"This is to be your new weapon to make up for the fact that I engaged your limiters once more. I've limited your access to about five percent of your maximum power in order to prevent you from sacrificing yourself needlessly. It'd be a waste to repair you only for you to be back on the table the next day. Go on, try it out."

02 rose from his seat and made his way over to where his colossal blade rested. He picked up the weapon with machine-like care, analyzing its properties as he did so. The weapon had a weight to match its incredible size, but lighter than one would expect at about a hundred pounds. This still rendered the weapon impossible for any normal human to wield, but to 02 its heft was noticeable, a good deal than his previous sword, but more than manageable. He took several practice swings, wide arcs that made the air sing around him with each attack he made against a phantom opponent.

Despite its almost lopsided appearance in terms of weight distribution the weapon remained comfortable and balanced in the boy's hands. It was made for him, lovingly crafted for his own personal use and his alone.

"What do you think of it?"

"It's..." The boy found himself unable to articulate his thoughts in words. He had never been asked to express his opinion before. He could only stare in silence as he tried to come up with what to say, only for his logic processes to fail him with every attempt.

"Are you having trouble forming an opinion on your own?"

02 nodded in the affirmative, feeling almost ashamed of his inability to even speak about something as simple as forming his opinions, much less vocalizing them.

"I guess it was a bit much to ask you to do something you were originally programmed not to do, so I suppose we'll let it slide. I've called it the weapon in your hands the Tactical Arms because it is designed to have multiple forms to adapt to a variety of situations. If you flick twist the grip you'll be able to try the Durandal's second form.

Quickly locating it, the robot twisted the grip within the palm of his hand until the trigger like holds were perpendicular to the blade with an audible click. Suddenly the weapon whirred to life, a variety of moving parts could be heard as it folded in half down the length of the blade before separating in a matter of moments, leaving him with two identical one-handed single-edged swords.

"This form is designed for taking on opponents attacking from multiple sides. While the large zweihander form is just fine for dispatching tightly knit groups of Grimm and armored targets, this form is designed to grant you a little more finesse to take out more scattered and mobile opponents. There are still two more forms we should go over though. Try bending the grips downward now."

He followed his orders, pulling down the grips in such a manner that they now resembled the triggers on an actual rifle. More whirring could be heard from the inside of the weapon as the front end of the blade shifted downward similar to a pair of bayonets, revealing the barrels of two high caliber automatic rifles where the blades once were.

"This form is meant to give you the ability to engage in both ranged and melee combat at once. I remembered your preference for firearms with high stopping power with a rapid rate of fire to match. Thus this will provide both a means of defeating foes from a distance without compromising your ability to fight in close quarters. Then there is the last form of the Tactical Arms. Put the two rifles together side by side and watch what happens."

Following this last set of instructions, the weapon made even more noise, parts linking together and pieces of the weapon folding until he held a minigun with two smaller barrels lined up next to each other. The blades were now pointed downward almost as if they were a bipod for the pair of cannons.

"This is a form specialized for suppressive fire from a secured position. I designed this to allow you to provide covering fire for your allies as well as mow down any Grimm foolish enough to stand in your way. It is rather inaccurate when firing from the hip, so I set the blades to act as cooling fins and stabilizers to reduce these issues to their bare minimum. Perhaps you should try out a-"

02 squeezed the trigger once, letting out a burst of gunfire which ended with a number of gaping bullet holes in the wall next to the door.

The Professor gave a disapproving sigh as he shook his head at the sight.

"I meant at the firing range, 02. You should never open fire in here unless it's absolutely necessary."

Another uncomfortable pain shot through 02's chest at these words, the epicenter of focused where his heart should be. His thoughts immediately filled with the words he never thought he would but instinctively knew he should say.

"I apologize Professor. I didn't..."

"That's alright. Part of the blame belongs to me. I wasn't clear in my instructions. But the silver lining in this unfortunate occurrence is that you are developing a feeling of regret, and thus a conscience."

"A conscience, sir?"

"A sense of right and wrong. It is knowing what you should do versus what you should not. It is a vital skill for any part of today's society and one you should develop immediately."

"Would my actions be considered reprehensible then, sir?"

"If you were a normal soldier, then the answer would most certainly be a yes. However, because of the fact that you are still becoming accustomed to feelings such as these I will be lenient this time."

"Thank you Professor." For the first time today he felt some relief from all of these starting and strange things he was developing, particularly those of emotions and the ability to think for himself.

"No thanks is necessary here. Using this monstrosity of a weapon will take effort and practice, so I expect to see you at the Training Room starting tomorrow."

"Understood. As for now?" The question came more easily to him than before, but the unnatural feeling remained.

"For now, I want you to begin learning about the social norms by interacting with other people. We can't have you acting like this forever now can we?"

This statement only exacerbated the robot's confusion, "Is there an issue with my behavior Professor?"

"Well, outside of combat you are honestly as naive and inexperienced in the way the world works as a newborn baby. You're going to be exploited by the people around you if you don't wise up a little."

"Wising up, sir?"

The professor sighed in frustration, "It seems you'll also have to learn how to learn the colloquial. Very well. I've also ordered some clothes for you. It'll be impossible for you to act similarly to a human if you wear nothing but military uniforms."

He handed the boy a box. "Take off your current clothes and put these on."

As 02 began removing the remains of the uniform he was wearing the professor quickly amended his order, "At the locker room please."

The boy blinked at the statement, "Is there an issue, professor?"

"In today's society it is indecent to change clothes in front of others, so please go to the locker room first."

He didn't quite understand but he followed his orders anyway, leaving the room quietly. When he returned he was wearing a set of modern looking clothes which contrasted with his sister's more old fashioned style.

Covering his torso was a white skintight short sleeved shirt with a large neon blue gear-like pattern on the center. On top of it was an unzipped black jacket with cuffs at the end of the sleeves and a high collar. Neon markings similar to the t-shirt's could be seen running down both the collar and the sleeves.

He was also wearing dark blue jeans with the same patterns on the knee area and close to the end of each leg. A belt with a number of pouches and compartments circled his waist, presumably to hold supplies such as ammunition. The outfit was finished with a pair of black boots and fingerless gloves.

"What do you think of your new outfit?" the professor asked his creation as the latter continued to look over his new clothes.

"They're... light. They don't feel the same as a military uniform and they're not made of the same material."

"I was hoping for less of a scientific response and more of your own personal thoughts on the matter, but it will have to do for now. Basically I want you to remain with Penny for now and interact with her to begin your education on how to act normally."

The professor then turned to Penny who was gazing intently the whole time in silence, but with a veritable tidal wave of excitement being barely held back by the fact that she wasn't given an order.

"Yes Penny, you'll be allowed to interact with him first."

"Yay!" She quickly ran over to her brother and lifted him in a bear hug. "There is so much I want to talk to you about-" She stopped and put him down as she too realized something.

"Father, you haven't given him a name yet."

By this point, calling 02 perplexed would be an understatement, but this was the icing on the cake. "A name? Was I not issued a serial number?"

"Yes you were, but no sane person outside of the military is going to find a serial number for a name perfectly ordinary. So I've decided to give you a new name to celebrate your new self-awareness."

"I'll receive any designation you see fit, sir."

"I hope you will. I've decided to name you Chrome. That will be your new standard designation. Register it immediately. Do the same for your sister. You'll refer to her as Penny from now on and not Unit 01."

The eyes of the newly christened Chrome flashed blue yet again as he received the order, but mysteriously enough did not return to their previous chestnut color.

"With that out of the way, here is the sling for the Durandal. It's yours, so feel free to use it as you see fit." Chrome took into his hands his weapon's sheath, throwing it across his left shoulder before returning the Durandal to its default form and putting it away.

"That is all for now. Have fun interacting with your sister Chrome, she is certainly energetic." With that he waved for the two of them to leave, an opportunity that the female android did not hesitate to take as she began tugging at her brother's arm and leading him out of the lab.

Chrome remained as baffled as ever with this turn of events, yet did not feel uncomfortable with it, a fact that surprised even himself. In fact, with the smiling faces of his creator and "sister" he observed that the turn of events could potentially be favorable and that it would be a suitable course of action to simply follow it.

* * *

Sorry for the wait guys. This chapter is mostly expository in the end, but I hope you found it entertaining. What do you guys think of Chrome? I sort of modeled his personality off similarly socially awkward/robotic characters such as Shiba Tatsuya from Irregular at a Magic High School and Xenon from Maplestory. As for the Tactical Arms I was inspired by the weapon of the same name from Gundam fame. To be honest I'm still tied up with work right now (I've got a lab report, a historical essay paper and a Latin project to work though) so I spent last night and an additional four hours from when I woke up today writing this so I can say that I wrote _something_.

As always please tell me what you think. I'm not looking for pats on the back (as much as I enjoy them) as they don't tell me what I'm doing right or wrong. Saying at least one thing you did like and one thing you didn't is always helpful in getting me to write better, and I certainly hope you do in a review should you have the time.

That's it for now. Thanks for reading everyone and I hope to find you there in the next chapter.


	3. Chapter 2: Seeing Red

Disclaimer: I don't own RWBY. All characters and concepts that aren't my own belong to their respective owners.

* * *

"Chrome come over here!"

The silver-haired android took his sister unit's statement as an order and complied, walking over at an unnaturally steady pace. Penny had taken him out to go sightseeing for a while, a privilege granted to her as long as she didn't stray a set distance from the base.

"Come on, Mr. Ironwood will only let us out for a few hours a day! We've got to make the best of it!"

She began dragging him through town, visiting each and every shop to pique her interests, which given her hyperactive personality meant every single one of them.

Atlas is Remnant's leader in technological advancement which showed in its stores. Each had the very latest in daily appliances, household gadgets, and other outlets which would amaze virtually anyone who gazed upon them for the first time.

Chrome is not one of those people.

The splendor of all of these things simply flew over his head as his sister tried to explain each and every one to him in an attempt to start a conversation. Here are a few examples.

First, at the appliance store:

"Wow that television is so big, Chrome! Do you think Father would let us have one some day?"

"A screen of that size would not be cost efficient unless you were displaying that image to a group of ten or more people. Thus the probability of the professor purchasing one is unlikely." he stated as robotically as ever.

Then at the gadget store:

"Don't you think it'd be nice if we could own one of these new Scrolls?

"They're issued to Hunters-in-training who attend any of the major academies such as Beacon. We are not to enroll in one of those institutions and thus it isn't likely that we'll ever receive one. In addition, I am equipped with a telecommunications device, rendering the ownership of one superfluous."

"Still they sound so neat! They're like a phone, a computer, and a key all rolled into one. At least, that's what I've heard."

"The laboratory has access to a number of such appliances."

Finally while passing by a number of restaurants,

"I wonder what it's like to eat food like a human? Do you think they get pleasure out of it?"

"Humans consume food to sustain themselves. As artificial beings the process of consuming other organisms is unnecessary for us."

As accepting as she was of her new brother, his overly logical statements eventually grated on her thought circuits.

"Stop being so logical about everything! How are you supposed to have fun if you do that!" she complained while motioning frantically.

His recent patch led him to cock his head to the side and use his new capacity to ask questions, "What is fun?"

It dawned upon Penny that Chrome, having been taught nothing but how to fight up to that point, had no concept of the idea of having fun.

She put her finger to her chin as she saw many humans do several times, "Oh... um... It's when you feel happy after doing something... I think... Maybe Father should explain this to you."

"Understood. I will request an explanation from the professor as soon as possible."

She was happy enough with that response, "Okay then! Let's go to the clothing store next!"

The majority of clothing in Atlas was hardly flashy or striking to the eye. It mostly consisted of practical clothing such as windbreakers, dress shirts, and denim jeans rather than dresses or tank tops. Still, there were sets of luxury clothing available,

Still, Penny was determined to make use of her remaining forty-five minutes, thirty-two seconds and fifteen milliseconds worth of time outside. Taking Chrome inside the small outlet she began looking through clothes for him.

He merely watched as she sifted through rack after rack of clothing before finally coming upon something she liked.

She held out a black zipper fleece with a hood decorated with neon patterns not dissimilar to those on the coat he already wore, "Try this on, Chrome!"

Taking the statement as an order from a direct superior, he complied as he usually would. Thankfully, he had enough sense to remove his coat before putting on the fleece, much to his sister's relief.

"It looks good on you!"

Chrome cocked his head slightly, "Is it not similar in function to what I am currently wearing?"

"I read in a magazine that you're supposed to have different outfits. They say you look weird if you only wear one outfit every single day."

"Is that not the norm? The professor's records state that you wear the same blouse and set of overalls during 95% of your operational time."

"Um..." Penny's thought processes momentarily froze at her brother's completely on target observation, "Let's just get this for you!" She began reaching into her pockets before realizing that she had used up her weekly allowance on an earlier trip.

"I can't believe I used up all of my Lien! I really wanted to get you something too..." as she frowned and slumped over from disappointment.

Chrome's systems began immediately analyzing her for the cause of her distress but found no malfunctioning parts in her system, confusing the robot as nothing seemed out of the ordinary but his sister's behavior proved otherwise.

Remembering that Penny had reached into her pockets earlier Chrome decided to do the same, discovering a set of Lien cards along with a note.

* * *

_Chrome,_

_Your sister, like many other girls her mental age, loves to shop and will probably want to buy you something. So I decided to give you a few dozen Lien just in case she ran out earlier this week. Hand this to her and she should revert to her usual personality._

* * *

As his programming would dictate, he took the professor's statement as an order, calmly handing the set of Lien cards to Penny. As the Professor had expected, she perked up almost immediately and immediately ran to buy the hoodie for her brother.

She quickly returned holding a paper bag while looking ready to dance with glee.

"Oh, this is the best day ever! Thank you for coming with me, Chrome!" She embraced him happily in celebration, a gesture that continued to baffle the younger android to no end.

Chrome's expression reflected this, remaining utterly perplexed in the face of his sister's antics, but at the very least he no longer had no a reason to report about Penny's functionality. As she began dragging him out the door to the next store someone in a black suit and fedora bumped into the both of them, the latter collapsing to the ground after colliding with the synthetic girl.

"Mister, are you alright?" asked Penny as she tried to help the man off the floor.

"Get off me!" the man growled as he took off again, holding what appeared to be a brown duffel bag in his hands.

The robot girl frowned slightly, "What was bothering him?"

"Stop, my Dust!" cried the voice of an old man, leading the two artificial beings to turn at the sound of distress.

"What is wrong?"

"That man, he stole all of the Dust crystals from my shop!"

At the mention of theft Chrome's processor immediately entered a frenzy of activity, cross-referencing the thief's features and clothing to known records he stored in his database. It took seconds for him to get a hit. The man wasn't anyone high ranking, just a thug under the employ of a criminal informant named Hei Xiong, who was based in Vale.

"Violation of Atlesian law recognized, invoking Directive One, engaging combat mode." his eyes flashed red as he prepared to run after the thief, "Objective: Subdue target and secure stolen goods.

He deferred to his closest direct superior, Penny, "Requesting permission to begin the mission."

Penny thought pensively for a moment, "I don't know if this is a good idea, Chrome. Mr. Ironwood told us not to get into any trouble."

"Requesting permission to begin the mission."

"I know it's a directive of yours but still..."

"Requesting permission to begin the mission."

She waved her hand in front of his face in an attempt to incite a reaction, "Are you listening to me?"

"Requesting permission to begin the mission."

Finally, she relented as she realized how stubborn her brother was, "Permission granted, but I'm coming with you. A big sister has to take care of her little brother, right?"

"_A big sister has to take care of her little brother, right?"_ The image of a smiling girl in her late teens with long pink hair flashed in his mind without warning at the phrase, causing Chrome's eyes to widen. The image vanished as quickly as it appeared, leaving Chrome clueless as to what had just transpired.

"Chrome, what's wrong?" Penny was looking straight into his eyes, full of concern at her brother's strange behavior.

"_The mission is my highest priority."_ he thought as he shook it off, "A minor malfunction." he stated as he dismissed the effect as a glitch introduced with his new programming. Then once again without warning, he felt a strange sensation he never experienced before.

It was an uncomfortable tingling that was centered in his nose, eventually forcing him to recoil before letting out a sound that he never heard before. The sound that exited his voice box almost sounded like a recording. It was neither deafeningly loud nor unnoticeably quiet. It was neither high nor low in pitch. It was distinctive, yet oddly enough no one really noticed. Yet, it was noticeable to the android, and the experience made Chrome freeze and momentarily forget about the mission.

"What... was... that?" he asked as remained incredulous of all of the alien behaviors he had been performing this utterly baffling (to him) day.

"Uh... I think it's called a sneeze." replied Penny, "That's really weird. I don't think we can get sick or have allergies... We'll have to talk to Father about this later. Come on, I already gave you permission, let's catch that criminal!" she declared while gesturing like a hero out of a comic book.

Chrome was once again forced to leave his innumerable questions about his new behaviors in the back of his mind, "Understood. Mission start!"

The two of them ran up the street after the thief, leaving the poor shop owner in the dark as to what just happened.

* * *

The time Chrome spent shocked by the strange things happening to him gave the criminal a sizable head start.

In fact, the Dust thief didn't even know he was being followed when he entered the rather empty bar that acted as his group's makeshift hideout. Most of his comrades (all identically dressed and styled down to their facial hair) were basically lazing around as they had finished their own assignments and awaiting further orders.

"I'm back."

"That was fast. There weren't any guards?"

"They're all too busy investigating what happened last night."

"I wouldn't blame them. They said Ironwood's got a new weapon."

"What is it? Some kind of cannon or android?"

"I dunno, but it wiped out an army of several thousand Grimm last night."

"You're not serious."

"Hell if I know. The military here ain't Vale. Everything here is under wraps, and I don't wanna be the poor sucker dumb enough to try and unwrap em'"

"Can't blame ya there. Pass me a drink. After all that noise last night, I need one."

The fellow grunt complied as they began chatting away, completely unaware of the danger that was swiftly approaching them.

* * *

Given the massive lead the thief had, it wasn't long until Penny and Chrome lost sight of him.

"Where did he go?" Penny scanned her surroundings with little to no sign of the thug anywhere, "Let's see... maybe we should look over here... No, that's a residential area. Maybe over there..."

With Penny trying to decide which direction to go in Chrome began analyzing all of the data he had on Hei Xiong. There wasn't much, but the fact that struck Chrome most was the fact that the information broker ran a nightclub with his henchman as employees.

"Penny, where is the closest bar or nightclub?"

"Oh! I think I remember seeing one over here!" The pair dashed over to a nearby bar appropriately labeled, "The Hideout".

"Engaging optical scanners." An innumerable number of binary digits could be seen over the surface of his eyes as he quickly analyzed the building's interior, "Energy signature recognized. Large quantities of Dust detected in the back room."

"Alright then! Let's go those bad guys!" the robot girl declared, preparing to activate the remote blades in her backpack before stopped by her brother.

"I have been ordered by the Professor to prevent any harm from coming to you. As a result, I cannot let you enter combat unless I am given an order that states otherwise."

Her face fell at the thought of not only leaving her new brother to fight alone, "But I was designed for this..."

"Affirmative, but it was a direct order from the Professor."

Penny knew she didn't outrank her father in the eyes of her brother, so she begrudgingly took a step back, "Fine... I'll contact Mr. Ironwood to see if we can get some backup. You better not be hurt when I get back, you hear me?!"

Chrome's eyes flashed once more, "Understood. Orders received... Interpreting... Additional precautionary measures will be taken to avoid damage."

"As long as you get it... I'll be back soon, okay?" She turned and ran back to find the nearest communications center, leaving Chrome by himself once more.

The Atlesian military was not known for its subtlety, and the combat android was no exception.

Chrome drew the massive sword from his back, slicing the door to pieces before stepping inside and calmly announcing:

"You are under arrest for burglary and assault. Return the stolen Dust and surrender immediately."

The occupants of the bar responded in standard gangster fashion by pulling out every firearm they had and aiming it at the intruder.

"Surrender immediately and no harm will come to you." he repeated even in the face of dozens of submachine guns, pistols, and semi-automatic rifles.

In the face of this statement, Hei Xiong's men did what any low-level criminals against a reckless youth who barged into their hideout without a plan or a strategy.

They opened fire.

Chrome merely held Durandal in front of him, the massive sword deflecting every round without a scratch on its exterior. The same efforts that went into designing a blade that would cleave through the toughest armor also made it a nigh-impenetrable shield against conventional weaponry.

"Analyzing targets..." the silver-haired android muttered as his ocular receptors darted around the room to determine the best course of action, "Average Aura level of the targets below the standard required to authorize the use of lethal weaponry. Orders to eliminate targets not supplied... resorting to alternative measures."

As soon as the group's magazines were exhausted, Chrome split Durandal into its double longsword configuration, rushing at the startled mobsters at high speed.

"Limiting output to avoid unnecessary injuries and possible death." He swung the flat of a single blade against the chest of one, the force of the blow knocking the poor sap off his feet and into his cohorts, bowling them over much like the pins at an alley.

After briefly pausing to confirm the now unconscious group's life signs the artificial being turned to the rest of the group, now quaking in their boots at the impressive display of force.

"H-He's just like that blond girl the Boss mentioned in Vale!" one stuttered at his tried to reload his weapon before the strange boy in front of him could make another move.

Chrome blitzed the remaining men with unrelenting accuracy and precision, ensuring that not a single one would be left conscious by the time he was finished.

However, the stuttering man from earlier did manage to reload in time, drawing a bead on the storm of steel before squeezing the trigger once again, hoping that he would be able to down the boy for good.

To the last standing mobster's horror, the bullets merely bounced off the back of the boy's head. Worse still, the common crook saw that the head of each and every bullet had been flattened against the boy's skin.

The prickling feeling of the metal projectile's against the back of his head caused Chrome to turn around in response, his glowing red eyes staring directly at the terrified criminal.

"W-What are you?" the hat wearing hoodlum stammered as the android approached wearing the same, unflinchingly stoic expression as he did the entire fight.

Chrome did not respond, seeing no reason to state his name and origin to the criminal before striking the human with a single blow to the side of the head. The man's body went limp, his eye rolled backward, his expression of fear frozen on his visage even when knocked unconscious.

"Effectiveness of maneuver confirmed, recording for later use. Remaining targets... one."

The next thing to catch the robot's attention was the sound of footsteps coming from the back room.

"I was wondering what was causing all the commotion... to think that it'd be a kid." muttered a low, raspy voice.

Turning to face the source of the voice, Chrome found a tall man of exactly six foot four. His brown hair was dyed with streaks of red that was slicked backward in a windswept way. He wore a black, long sleeved trench coat with abstract, intertwining designs of red and white on the left shoulder and flame patterns at the edges along with a red shirt underneath.

The mysterious man also wore matching black pants and shoes, the latter made with soles a dull burgundy in color. The former was accented with yet another article of black clothing, a belt with white domino marks visible near the buckle. His hands were also covered by similarly black gloves with a stylized version of the letter "Omega" on the back. In his left hand he held a custom made short ranged rifle with no particular distinguishing features other than the fact that it also served as a sheath for a straight edged longsword.

Perhaps most striking of all was the man's mask. It was a whitish-tan ornament that covered the upper half of his face, with two slits on each side and decorated with oriental flame patterns. It's overall design however, matched those worn by members of the White Fang, a militant terrorist group led by a group of Faunus unhappy with their treatment in society.

These did not matter to Chrome, whose current objective was to discern the identity of this newcomer before taking appropriate action, "Facial recognition program initiated..."

It took seconds to get a match with 99.9% accuracy.

It took only one more for his sensors to start flaring, "The target's name is Adam Taurus, high-ranking member of the White Fang. Caution! An extremely dangerous combatant with a high level Aura on par with veteran Hunters. Threat Level: Alpha: Do not engage unless no other option is available."

Chrome stood his ground despite the danger before him, having promised to Penny that he would be there when she got back.

"He's not even Blake's age..." he muttered to himself before continuing, "You must be awfully confident to try and take me on alone... Are you a Hunter in training?"

The silver-haired android did not respond as his fifth protocol prevented him from revealing his origins to anyone outside of the Atlesian military.

"A quiet one, huh? Okay then... You've made a mess of this place alright..."

The White Fang member placed his right hand on the hilt of his weapon, "Let's see what you've got."

Adam Taurus closed the distance instantly, his crimson blade drawn and already moving towards Chrome's neck.

* * *

Q &amp; A With Chrome

Hello.

My current designation is Chrome.

I have been ordered to answer any questions pertaining to this story to the best of my ability. As such, submit any questions, thoughts, or ideas to the author through the private messaging system or in a review box below. I will be authorized to respond to them here. In addition, I have received directives to explain a single part of the author's narrative that had not been fully explored so that it may be comprehended properly in each installment.

The author would like to refer to himself as a "nice guy", so he requests that you do so to improve the quality of this work for your own enjoyment. In addition, he states that he will always take your advice to heart without exception.

In this chapter I have been ordered to address the topic of my power source being limited to roughly 5% of its maximum capacity by the Professor.

I may have been repaired to near full capacity but my power source is currently unstable after the massive strain put on it by the decision to use the Galatine on the oncoming horde of Grimm.

As a precaution it has been limited to its minimum output for normal function to prevent a potential meltdown and thus cease my function until a new Core can be acquired. Doing so would be incredibly expensive and time consuming as it involves experimentation on large clusters of Dust and condensing its power into a smaller and more concentrated form through a method I am not allowed to disclose.

The result is a highly productive but potentially self-destructive power source, providing the energy required for all of my functions. As a result, I would likely be at the risk of being rendered non-functional for several months should I be allowed to run on higher levels of power, a situation counterproductive to my directives and current orders.

While my basic functions and actions are not impacted by this the amount of power available for my Semblance is limited and thus my capability to utilize it is limited as well, reducing my fighting capacity against large numbers of targets. Thus it is a question of limited functionality vs non-functionality. My creator decided to choose the latter of the two options, resulting in the current situation.

That is all.

* * *

Hello, everyone! I'm sorry about the fact that it takes so long for me to update. Writing other stories (along with dealing with life in general) takes time, so I hope it turned out okay.

There is one particular review that struck me as particularly helpful was the somewhat caustic but extensive block of text that "ThatInternetGuy" posted. It made me think about this quite a bit, and I admit, my approach is quite flawed in hindsight. For that, I thank you a thousand times and the majority of the following is pretty much dedicated to you.

However, the reason why I implemented it in this way was for two reasons. First, I don't believe in the idea that an AI can suddenly learn emotions and act on them from brief contact with humans. I have little programming experience, but I do know that AIs that are not specifically programmed to emulate human responses do not and will not until they're programmed to do so. Even though this is a fictional story I'm doing this from a logical viewpoint.

Chrome has a soul, but is not exactly keen on using that for anything but combat and following orders. Thus he's unlikely to become that character that I want him to be if he is left to his own devices, meaning a character that is not a mindless drone to follow its directives alone without thinking at all for himself as his emotions have been suppressed in favor of combat efficiency, or in other words nothing more than what he was built to be. I guess the patch sort of nudged him in the direction of individual thought, but not quite all the way there yet.

As for your concerns, no he won't be meeting RWBY any time soon (this takes place before the incident at the docks) and will remain the way he is for the time being. Still, it's within my master plan to put him on a team at some point... A chess motif perhaps?

Though, I would like to clarify some things about Chrome's personality. He certainly won't be becoming emotional or hyperactive like Penny any time soon. Even though his emotions have been awakened, he still chooses to remain stoic and quiet as that is what he was originally programmed to be and he thus chooses to abide by it as that behavior is what he's most comfortable with. Thus he will still be the "silent robot assassin badass" type that you guys have requested. In fact, I designed him to be a foil to pretty much everything about Penny (close range versus long range, stoic versus emotional, analytical versus idealistic, e.t.c.).

That isn't to say that he won't be experiencing character development. He can now experience amusement, love, anger, compassion, and almost every other sort of expression that humans can. It's just that he has absolutely no idea what each form of expression means or how to express them in the first place. As a result, he will barely show what he's feeling at the moment, but he's not completely apathetic (he does know how to express confusion and shock, since I think they're two of the most primal and ingrained emotions a human has).

If I were to pick an anime character with the most similar personality to Chrome it would be Ikaros from Heaven's Lost Property, who was part of the basis for my outlook on his character. They are both classified as having extremely high combat and analytical potential, but fall short in the emotional category. Regardless, they aren't unfeeling, just unsure of how to express their ideas.

The biggest part of Chrome's development will be learning to act more human-like as per request of Penny and the good Professor, which I'd imagine several moments of hilarity along the way as he struggles to understand human customs, thought patterns, and lifestyles from a completely logical viewpoint because unlike Penny, fighting is really all he's ever known. Regardless, this process will be _very_ (notice the emphasis on _very_) slow.

Naturally, this would lead to flaws in his behavior. Like you mentioned, robot assassins are terrifying because they tear through everything without a care for what gets in between them. As a result however, they have trouble thinking outside of their directives and thus may charge into into damn near suicidal odds to take out their target, only to fail as a result. As seen in the prologue chapter, Chrome gives little conscious thought to his own well-being if it means following orders, something that nearly got him killed.

They also have problems working in teams as they are all going after the same target, and thus an entirely directive driven robot will not care if one of their allies is incapacitated or if the resulting losses from their actions which can result in a Pyrrhic (not Pyrrha, Pyrrhic) victory. They also will not question whether or not their talents could have been used elsewhere or more efficiently, further limiting their combat effectiveness. These are all traits that would impair someone in the teamwork-driven world of RWBY.

While Chrome is not designed to be an assassin (his first and primary directive is to defend all law-abiding citizens of the Kingdoms from criminals and Grimm, lending priority to VIPs of course), many of these behavioral aspects would apply to him. If given orders to do something by an officer of sufficient rank he will do so unless it explicitly violates one of his major protocols.

Thus I provided some degree of free will at the moment so that he is not a total (though he still is to a large degree) doormat. It's not as if he's going to suddenly develop his own personality and throw everything he's known up to this point out the window. It's just enough so that he can think for himself (so his overly logical mind can question the not so logical world and mindset of much of RWBY's cast as well as his own changing behavior).

I understand if you don't like this concept (I admit, my execution probably stinks) but I kind of implied it from the start with the blurb, so I'm really sorry if I displeased you anyway because that wasn't my intent at all.

As for the second reason... that I will not discuss right now.

As for the request for Chrome to fight Pyrrha that would probably be one-sided in Pyrrha's favor, considering the latter's Semblance and the former being made of metal... Though I wouldn't mind having Chrome put CRDL in their place again (come on, who _didn't_ enjoy watching Pyrrha kick the crap out of them).

Phew... How's that for an author's response?

Sorry for making you read all that (this response is half the freaking chapter), but I hope I answered a few questions and concerns. As always, please tell me what you think in a review. Try to make it more than one sentence please and keep it constructive! Any sort of input you can give me will probably help me in my writing process, meaning a more interesting story and a shorter waiting period for you readers. So please, put some thought into it!

Thanks for reading and see you next time!

P.S. Monty Oum passed away on February 1st as a result of complications involving a medical procedure he underwent. Please pray for him and hope he rests in peace.


	4. Chapter 3: Mess With the Bull

Disclaimer: I don't own RWBY. All characters and concepts that aren't my own belong to their respective owners.

* * *

Adam Taurus's crimson blade approached Chrome's neck with blinding speed, the edge approaching the robot's neck with the clear intent to land a decisive blow.

Chrome was barely able to react in time, taking a step backwards and flicking his right hand upward to have Durandal intercept the attack just as the crimson sword would have cut into his neck. Had he acted a second later the edge probably wouldn't have stopped there, given the White Fang member's reputation.

"Nice reflexes," Taurus remarked as he swiftly resheathed his blade, "Let's see you do that again."

Just as the android brought the other half of his weapon up to defend the Faunus began his assault, unleashing a series of rapid blows too swift for the average human to track with the naked eye alone. Although he was superior in terms of raw strength, the silver-haired android was trapped in the defensive against the lightning quick Faunus as a single well placed hit could spell defeat for the former.

Under normal circumstances the android would have tried to trap Taurus in a blade lock to quickly overpower the criminal and throw him off balance, but the latter's method of sheathing his blade after every strike made that impossible. The artificial being simply did not have the expertise necessary to handle the monstrous speed of the White Fang elite.

In short, Chrome was completely and utterly outmatched.

"Come on, kid. You can't beat me if all you're going to do is defend!" resheathing his blade once more, Taurus fired his weapon at the head of his younger foe, who was forced to block as it rebounded off his own blade.

"You'll have to do better than this!" the White Fang member caught his sword before swinging it down in a two handed motion, generating enough force to send the android backward several meters.

Chrome converted the Durandal into its third form during this time, aiming both halves of the weapon directly at the Faunus before unleashing a storm of high-caliber rounds towards the most probable locations his target could run to.

However, Taurus did not run or hide, instead deflecting the rounds with a series of expertly timed swings before sheathing his sword once again.

"Sorry, I've already dealt with this country's security androids." he taunted, "That tactic isn't working on me."

"Target's speed far exceeds available parameters. Current tactics insufficient. Analyzing environment to determine the best course of action." Chrome thought aloud as his thought circuits raced to determine a viable strategy against the danger before him.

"What are you blabbering about?" asked Taurus.

Chrome didn't respond, his mind processing dozens of potential battle scenarios in a short amount of time. With all options considered, he found the only viable course of action.

The chance of success were less than 1%.

Even still, one entry that was missing from the robot's lexicon was the word "surrender".

The robot once again combined the halves of his weapon before gripping the sword with both hands and holding it low to the ground behind him, preparing to react at the slightest source of motion.

"You're not going to be able to block with that kind of stance." Taurus remarked, "You're practically begging for me to cut you down."

The android remained silent, his steely blue eyes trained on the Faunus's every movement.

Taurus merely grinned, "Your loss."

The red-haired swordsman rushed forward once more, aiming to end this fight once and for all.

Unfortunately for him, that plan went awry in a hurry, as the android's own plan took him by surprise.

The android's massive, double-edged sword came down with almost pinpoint accuracy as Taurus approached, almost cutting the Faunus in two. The faster foe had barely managed to bring his weapon up to stop it, an effort that was quickly becoming futile as the crimson blade began bending under the force of his opponent's blow.

"How the hell did you-" snarled the aggressor, his full interested now piqued by the young combatant before him.

"The time it takes for: Adam Taurus. To cross: ten meters. Of flat space is: 0.12 seconds." interrupted Chrome, "He begins his movement 0.24 seconds after clutching the hilt of his weapon."

Taurus's eyes briefly widened behind his mask, "You calculated the exact amount of time it took me to approach?"

However, his feelings of shock quickly passed, his mouth twisting into a smirk, "Now things are getting interesting..."

Chrome did not stop there, before Taurus could regain his footing the android once again separated the blades of the Durandal, pinning the Faunus with one hand while swinging half of the weapon with the other.

"Pretty good... but not good enough." Taurus scraped the edge of his blade against his opponent's as he rolled out of the path of both of the android's weapons.

As soon he did however, the right half of Durandal shot towards his position, the tip grazing the bridge of his mask as he attempted to create distance between them.

Chrome would have none of it, the powerful hydraulic systems in his legs allowing him to close the distance between him and the Faunus in seconds. While his overall speed was vastly inferior to his opponent, Chrome was still designed to be able to be able to move at a speed comparable to any trained Hunter, a trait vital to his determined course of action.

Taurus decided to finally return fire, rapidly releasing a small burst of rounds in an attempt to slow the robot down, all of which were deflected by the armaments of their target who spun to throw a pair of powerful downward strikes.

Even as the Faunus avoided the attack with a timely backstep, the android would not let up, continuing his series of attacks by swing the halves of the Durandal diagonally, forcing the pair to clash once more.

Taurus was then forced to block the first blade with his weapon before blocking the second with the scabbard, the ground beneath the pair of combatants cracking under the pressure from the robot's swings.

Taurus grunted, "You're trying to keep the pressure on me so I can't cut you to pieces, aren't you kid?"

"Affirmative." the android responded, his expression unchanging as he applied more and more pressure, his assault only being repelled by his opponent's gratuitous use of Aura.

"You've got guts... I'll give you that. But I think it's about time for me _to__ get serious._"

Chrome soon found both halves of his weapons repelled by an enormous burst of Aura before Taurus sent him flying with an equally potent side kick.

Less than a second later the criminal had closed the distance between them, slicing open the robot's torso with ease before letting him fall in a crumpled heap on the ground.

"I wasn't even trying to make it lethal that time. You really have no idea how to use your Aura, do you?" muttered the Faunus, "You'll stay down if you know what's good for you."

He turned to walk away until he heard the sound of sparking circuitry and cracking tiles from behind him.

"For the love of..." the android was still trying to pick a fight, supporting himself by stabbing the tips of his swords into the ground.

The gash on his chest was deep and certainly serious, but not mortal in anyway. The crimson sword had completely missed his power source, but had cut through important wiring along with the motors and tubing that held the same structural functions as the human core muscles.

"_Movement capability at less than 40%."_

"_Combat efficiency dropping..."_

However, there was something more troubling to the robot than the impending failure of his extremities.

"_What is this sensation? It's akin to the human feeling of stinging or burning, but my skeleton is impervious to puncture wounds from Rapier Wasps, and the temperature of my body systems has not increased. What is happening?!" _

However, his core programming took over once more, allowing him to focus on the task at hand, "Primary objective: Detain the target for as long as possible." Chrome recited, his jaw tightly clenched as he slowly managed to pull himself into a standing position.

"You're not going to let me go, are you?" muttered Taurus as he placed his hand on the hilt of sword once more.

Chrome didn't respond, but the message the android meant to send rang loud and clear to his opponent.

"Fine, just know that you brought this on yourself." the crimson blade once again approached the robot, only to be swatted away by the would-be victim's massive twin blades.

"_The kid's reaction time got even faster!" _noted the Faunus as the android stared directly into his eyes.

"Secondary objective: Maintain functionality at all costs!" Chrome swung both blades once more in a heavy arc, connecting with their target and sending him careening across the room.

He then held the twin swords with his palms facing outward, the edges soon crackling with white lightning as the android accessed his Semblance before sending two pulverizing shock waves of energy in an X-shaped pattern at his opponent.

Unfortunately, it was Chrome's turn to be surprised.

"Big mistake." Taurus partially unsheathed his blade, the blade catching and absorbing the projectile before he resheathed the weapon once more.

The engravings on his mask and the designs on his clothes lit up, turning the burgundy thread scarlet, "Let's see you survive this."

With a single horizontal swing a massive wave of energy of a magnitude far greater than its original left the edge of the crimson blade, annihilating everything caught in his path.

Chromes eyes widened as the attack approached, _"This __maneuver__ was not in my records!"_

The structural damage he had sustained earlier had severed the circuitry that connected his thought circuits to the hydraulic systems in his legs, rendering his lower half all but inoperable.

In other words, he was a sitting duck.

The best he could do was hold the Durandal in front of him with the edge against the wave before bracing for the inevitable impact.

It was far more than an impact. The robot could feel his skin vaporizing as the attack made contact with the blades, revealing parts of his metallic skeleton in the process. His hands were shaking, straining despite the fact that his frame was built to reduce impacts by a maximum of 93%.

Finally the wave detonated in front of him, blowing him backward and crashing him into the wall, leaving a visible crater in the process. He once again found himself unable to stand no matter how hard he tried, much like a marionette with the strings cut.

"You're some piece of work..." remarked Taurus as he sauntered over, "but now it all comes to an end. You put up a good fight kid, but now it's time to say good night."

"Get away from my brother!" A flurry of short swords flew between the android and the Faunus, stopping the latter in his tracks and forcing him to back off as the blades homed in on his position.

"Chrome are you alright?" he managed to look up to see his sister unit rushing to his aid, her bright green eyes full of nothing but concern for her blue-eyed counterpart.

"Another one?" muttered the White Fang elite.

"Penny... this man... is exceedingly dangerous..." he managed to say with difficulty, grimacing in pain all the while.

"Don't worry, I've brought reinforcements." A group of Atlesian Knights began flooding in through the entrance with all of their rifles aimed directly at the criminal before them.

She turned and stood between her brother and the man before her, "Besides, I'm combat ready! So stand down, Adam Taurus!"

"Sorry, but I have places to go and things to see." casually remarked Taurus as he turned his back to his pursuers, "Torchwick's girl, you're up."

A petite girl even smaller than Penny and Chrome seemed to appear out of thin air, carrying an ornate umbrella. Her hair was bright pink on her right side and chocolate brown on her left, with the pigmentation of her eyes mirroring the same colors. If it weren't for her matching business attire and high heels it would have been easy to mistake the girl for someone of Penny's mental age.

The newcomer did not speak a word, instead smiling eerily sweetly at the group before waving goodbye as the Knights opened fire, the image of the pair of criminals shattering into dozens of pieces in the same manner as a dropped mirror.

When the smoke cleared, the pair was nowhere in sight.

"They got away!" exclaimed Penny in surprise, "But how? Was that her Semblance?"

She tugged her hair in frustration. "Oh... we're going to be in so much trouble when we get home!"

Her thoughts soon returned to her fallen brother, "Can you stand?"

"90% of my movement functions... have been disabled." his voice had grown closer to its usual monotone, but still held some uncharacteristically downtrodden notes.

"Okay then, I'll just carry you!" she scooped him up in her arms and began carrying him outside towards a waiting Bullhead.

Chrome turned his head to the side, his usually neutral lips turned into a small frown, "I apologize."

"What do you mean?" asked Penny.

"I failed to apprehend the suspect."

She smiled at him, "You don't need to worry about that. Father will be happy that you're home safe and sound."

The younger model went silent for a moment before looking into her eyes and asking, "Why do you have so much concern for my well-being?"

"That is just what a sister does! We're family!"

The term only served to further perplex Chrome, "A family is a group of humans with a similar genetic code as a result of sharing progenitors within a few generations. Artificial beings do not have a genetic code."

"Well, we sort of do. Father made the both of us, right?"

"That is true."

"Then we have the same father! That means we're family, right?"

Chrome only blinked before turning away again, "I... do not understand that question."

"You'll understand some day." her smile diminished a little, "I hope..."

* * *

After one thousand years, I'm free!

Or at least it feels that way.

Yeah, it's been a long, long time since my last update. I just finished my junior year of high school along with two SATs, an AP US History Test, four additional three hour tests, an eleven-page paper on how Eisenhower helped America dominate the world in the name of battling Communism (I'm serious), a creative art project that involved making a website, and so on...

Please cut me some slack here.

Though to be honest, I'm kind of ashamed that after such a long period I only have this two thousand-something word long chapter to show for it. Even then I'm not sure if the fight between Chrome and Adam was really up to par for the series. It feels a bit sluggish to me, but my intent was to show that Chrome's raw power is meaningless unless he gets the practice he needs to use it. Neo's appearance was probably a bit of a cop out I'm sure, but I just thought that it'd be a cool way for Adam to make an exit as well as act as a continuity nod for later events in the series.

The part at the end was more of an attempt to display Chrome's mindset that he is a weapon first and foremost, love and familial relations are still Greek to him as far as he is concerned. Not my best work, I know, but hey I'm trying.

So yeah, I'm back and I'm writing. I hope you enjoyed the chapter and I look forward to seeing you next time.

P.S. I'm going to start assigning my OCs battle music because I tend to think of the source material when I write... which usually comes with awesome battle music. In Chrome's case, it's going to be "22nd Child" OR "Lost Children" from the Super Robot Wars series. The reason why he has two is because they're two different arrangements of the same song (which is also amazing by the way) and I couldn't decide which one fit him better, so I'll let you guys make the decision on that one.


End file.
